Chapter Text
Allen didn’t know what he was doing here, or why as a matter of fact. The warning signs were all over the place since the beginning, but he ignored them. He wasn’t sure how he was going to manage the rest of his year just by glancing at...this. Whatever this was.
The intention was to go to college and work at the same time, and that was it. The rest of his days would be lounging around his apartment room with Timcanpy and eating. That’s it.
Instead, it was highly recommended he joined a fraternity or club, as it looked better once he graduated. Even with that information, he still wasn’t so encouraged to go.But, he still went to the club fair just to see what there was, considering a fraternity was out of the question, being surrounded by rich guys who’s ego was high up their- it wasn’t appealing.
A few clubs caught his eye. The music club, the going home club, the happy club, the eating club. All wonderful candidates, the last being his number one choice. Hee still decided to look around more and get fliers of the ones he was the most interested in or if someone handed them to him with a pleading look. He pitied them, so he took them with a warm smile, one that said he’ll consider it, but no not really.
Of course, he knew no matter how much he wanted to join a club, whether it be eating or going home, or how much of a nice warm smile he’d give, he knew none of them wanted him. It was just his norm of never being wanted anywhere due to his looks. This was the twentieth century where dying your hair and dressing in crazy makeup and being as extra as you want was normal and encouraged, body positivity and sympathy as well, but it was never enough to reach him. Growing up, Allen had only been discriminated and made fun of by his past and looks. White hair- like that of an old man-, a long deep red scar on his left eye with a pentacle on top, and his burned left arm that looked bloody red and ugly and wrinkly. He was a walking freak, he always has been. It’s why him and social events or social anything didn’t work out, including clubs.
With these thoughts in mind, Allen sighed and put the hand-outs he got in his satchel. He’ll probably throw them out later at home or something.
Just as he was about to leave though, a certain club caught his attention. It was more distant than the others and was just...different. No one was around there, or any people who did pass by avoided it completely. It somehow drew him in closer.
Allen started to walk towards it. It was a black tent that covered all sides except the front, which had a table and some papers. That’s it, along with some weird symbol in the middle of it. No one was behind the table, nor in front, which made him a little hesitant.
As he slowly approached the table to look at the papers, a sudden voice bursted behind him.
“Hello!!”
Allen jumped and slowly turned his head back to face the ominous voice.
In front of him was a girl with dark green hair - which he would’ve thought was black if it wasn’t for the lighting of the sun- that went up to her shoulders, black eyes, fair skin, and a black uniform. She looked at him with a big playful smile and shining eyes.
Assuming Allen noticed her and had enough time to process, she talked before he could say anything, “You interested in our club?” She pointed behind him towards the tent.
Allen looked back at the tent before fulling turning towards her, preparing for any ounce of hesitance or regret as soon as she saw his scar, “Ah um...I don’t know...I’m not really sure..what it is about…”
Nothing changed. Instead, she looked even more gleeful and determined, fueled by his question, “Then why don’t you come and find out? We could really use more members! And don’t worry, even if you’re the anti-social type,” she winked, “We’re a pretty small club so you don’t have to worry too much about being a huge group! We got quite the interesting characters too.”
She then handed him the clipboard she was holding, “Just fill this out! No pressure of course. There won’t be anything crazy, and if you want a general idea, we’re more like a big family who help each other and the school! Or more of a study hall type of club. But what it specifically is, you’ll just have to figure that out when you come by!” The girl sounded to sure he was going to go without him doing anything at all except awkwardly look at her while holding the clipboard.
He looked down at it and saw in huge letters in the top center of the stage “BLACK ORDER”.
Reassuring.
The rest of the form was just like any other, asking for his name, age, what year he’s in, his phone number, the basics. It was odd for him to fill it out, since he didn’t bother with any other club, not even the ones he considered the most. But the genuinity she had, how it seemed it was hard for them to get members, and how pretty she was, encouraged him to fill out the form, if not to satisfy her. There was no way he’d be able to stand seeing a disappointed face on her cheerful one. It made him think how other people were able to reject or avoid her so easily, although Allen was an easy target when it came to convincing. Despite wanting to not get associated with people too much because of what he’s experienced, he never had a tough heart to really reject people like her.
When he finished filling out the form with the pen that already came with it, he handed the clipboard back to her. That didn’t mean he was 100% going, it just means he considered it.
The girl’s face lit up even more when she got the clipboard out, unclamping and clamping it back up to get a paper that was in the back of the form and handed it to Allen, “Here! It has the date of the our first meet up, or well, the meet up for new members and where it’ll be.”
Allen took the paper and look at it. It was a small square that looked similar to the form but instead had an address and date written on it along with other stuff he’ll read later. Allen gave her a small smile and nod, “Thank you.”
“No problem!” She smiled, “Can’t wait to see you there!” At that, she skipped off back to the tent.
She really is something else, he smiled to himself and walked off as well back to his apartment.
He took out his key and rattled it at the lock, opening the door to his apartment room with a small click. As he entered, he sighed and threw his bag on floor and flopped on the couch, covering his face with an arm.
He was tired. It was the most he was out and about that wasn’t for work or school, that he went out willingly for no reason. Well some reason, to find a club.
He reached into his pocket to pull out the paper he’d been given earlier and read it.
-Meeting: Sunday September 1st in the Science Building, Floor B
It was gonna be in a week.. he thought before feeling something hop on the couch. It was Tim, his golden tabby cat, who went to sit on his stomach and meow, staring at him with his yellow eyes. Allen couldn’t help but smile and scratch him under his chin. “Do you think I should go? I mean, I didn’t plan to and just filled it out so I couldn’t see the girl disappointed. Of course she’ll be disappointed if I didn’t go, but I at least won’t be able to see it,” he rambled to Tim, who simply looked back and meowed, putting a paw on his cheek.
“Yeah...she’d still be upset though, and I don’t think I can live on peacefully knowing that.” Allen groaned and rolled to his side, Tim sliding with him. It was likely she'd be upset if he didn't go, if anything maybe she was just being kind but really didn't want him to go. He really thought highly of himself to think he could make her upset. But he clung on to that excuse, that hope.
In all honesty, Allen always wanted to be part of some group. Working alone was fine and all, he was used to it and found it more efficient and have the less amount of obstacles, in work and life in general, but it doesn’t mean he didn’t yearn for something. To be accepted by people and know he has people there for him.
He stared at the paper again. “A family...huh..” he quietly said to himself. Of course this could all be some major elaborate prank at him, it wouldn't be the first time people went so far to prank him and make him feel more miserable about his life, but he couldn't just keep living with this anxiety. Easier said than done, but he oddly trusted the girl. Maybe this really was his chance…
So he thought. As it brought him back to present time, a few feet away from the elevator he just got off of.
The first warning sign he should’ve gotten was back at the fair, when everyone avoided the club like the plague. The second was the presentation of the club stand itself, and how the girl came out of nowhere. The third was the name, the biggest warning of them all. The fourth then being the fact that there was only one B Floor in the Science building, which was ultimately the basement.
The fifth. The fifth was right in front of him.
The basement itself didn’t look so bad, it looked like a lounge with carpet, a table, some couches, another table with science junk, some boxes, a kitchen, and another room that was in there for some reason. It was small, probably an office.
But it wasn’t the basement that was the warning. No. It was the people.
The girl wasn’t lying when she said it was small, there was only 6 people, at least, that he could see at the moment. And they were all very..well...something else. It wasn’t like Allen was someone who could talk about how crazy someone else looks but he couldn’t help himself. He felt like this was his only exception.
On the couch was a boy with messy amber hair -held up with a bandana to keep it all from his face- an eyepatch, green earrings, and a scarf that matched his hair. He was nervously grinning as he tried to push away a man who looked like a samurai that was taken straight out from the edo period with his long black hair tied back into a high ponytail, only some long strands of hair in his face along with bangs- and he looked like he was holding an unsheathed katana and pulling it closer towards the redhead’s neck while cursing like a sailor, calling the other a stupid rabbit, only for the one being cursed at to cheekily respond back, not understanding the very dangerous situation he looks to be in that doesn't look there is any way of escape. Unless he knows his fate, how dangerous the situation is, and accepted it, which is why he doesn’t seem to care.
Looking somewhere else he could see a tall lanky man with a small patch of white hair in the front wearing a cloak laying down on another couch as he cried. Despite his current crying expression, he looked like a vampire. More like Dracula who kept mourning someone named “Eliade” or along those lines.
Behind the couch of the vamp- of the tall man, was a woman with the worst eye bags he’s ever seen, he can see them no problem. She was a nervous wreck, trying to comfort the vampire on the couch but instead looked like she was going to cry herself. The poor woman.
In the midst of this all, was a muscular man with only a few hair that was put into a ponytail, who was at the kitchen counter sipping away at tea, his eyes closed with headphones on as if he had no concern in the world. As if everything was perfectly normal.
Yes. Everything was perfectly normal. There wasn’t a man about to be killed by samurai who had a katana -which he wasn’t sure was even allowed on campus, or even legal. There wasn’t a vampire crying on the couch as the woman who tried to comfort him was so close to crying that she had a nervous smile and started chanting to herself.
Just by the corner of his eye he could see a little more movement, but he was too afraid to look. Just the scene in front of him was enough.
His attention was caught by the sound of heels and a gasp of a familiar voice, “Ah! So you were able to make it, Allen,” He turned to her, the girl from last week who gave him the paper, who had a warm welcoming smile, “It’s Allen, isn’t it?”
He hesitantly nodded. Even if he lied, there was no way he could get away with it. Everything about his appearance gave it away, he could never be mistaken by someone else, he was cornered.
She clapped her hands, eyes shining, “Well, welcome Allen! Welcome to the Black Order!” She opened her arm out to motion at the room.
At that moment it seemed everyone finally snapped out of what they were doing and acknowledged his existence by turning his way.
He gulped and tried his best to smile, which came out to look more nervous that he hoped, and gave a small wave.
What had he gotten himself into.